Man accused of stalking former Plainville doctor applies for program

PLAINVILLE - A Middletown man accused of stalking his previous doctor, a former Plainville resident, has applied for a program to avoid prosecution.

Gerald Augustine, 50, appeared Tuesday in Bristol Superior Court, where he filed an application for a diversionary program. If granted, he could be placed on a form of pretrial probation for two years - during which time he would have to abide by a number of court-ordered conditions.

If Augustine - who is free on $35,000 bond - were to be successful in the program, the charges lodged against him - second-degree stalking and disorderly conduct - would be dropped. He will learn on his next court date, Oct. 24, if a judge feels the program is appropriate.

Court officials on Tuesday said the complainant is objected to the use of a program and wants Augustine to sustain a criminal conviction.

According to the arrest warrant, the victim, who had previously treated Augustine for a medical condition, received a handwritten, two-page note on June 24 at her then-Plainville home. In it, the anonymous writer said the woman had come onto him and that he “fell in love” with her. The letter also had an email address included, which police used to trace the document back to Augustine, who was then told not to contact the woman again.

The victim told police she never had any emotional feelings for Augustine and that she never gave him any indication that she did. Furthermore, she said she believes he may suffer from a mental disorder and likely “made up this fantasy in his head.”

Then on July 7, after the doctor had moved out of Plainville, a former neighbor of hers called police and said she was approached by a man who wanted to know where the victim had moved, according to the warrant. The woman said the man told her his doctor had “molested him” and “seduced him,” the document continued.

While police investigated, they found that 10 other neighbors had also been approached by a man who wanted to know where his doctor had moved, alleging that she had molested him, according to the warrant.

Police then spoke to Augustine, who said his doctor in September showed signs that she was “in love with him,” according to the warrant. As he continued to talk with police, he said he was upset when he received a warning from an officer who told him not to contact the victim anymore, the warrant said. This, he said, is why he went to her former neighborhood, to inform the residents of what kind of person his former doctor is, police wrote in the warrant.

Augustine also admitted to officers he had found out where the woman’s parents live, in another state, and that he had driven there to ask residents if they knew the parents or the doctor so he could make them aware of the allegations he has made against the victim. Police said Augustine also admitted to driving by the victim’s home multiple times when she lived in Plainville.

Justin Muszynski can be reached at 860-973-1809 or at jmuszynski@centralctcommunications.com.